Method of making laminated shingles

ABSTRACT

This invention is directed to a multi-layer laminated shingle, wherein each shingle layer comprises granule and bituminous coated web, with the layers laminated together and with the butt zone of the base layer disposed against a bottom surface of the tab zone of the secondary layer and with the tab zone of the base layer disposed against the bottom surface of the butt zone of the secondary layer. The shingle lends itself to having tabs spaced by voids. Because the tabs in the base layer are inverted, the base layer&#39;s butt zone is visible through voids in the tabs of the secondary layer. The method of making the shingle lends itself to complementally cutting out the tabs of two side-by-side shingles from a given line. Enhanced nailing area is provided, and stacking of shingles for packaging is facilitated.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the art of shingle manufacture, it has been known that laminatedshingles may be prepared using separate layers. Each layer isconstructed, generally of a bituminous coated web, with granules appliedto an upper surface thereof.

The two shingle layers are then laminated together, by application of anadhesive, generally a bituminous material, to the back of the secondarylayer, which is then applied over the base layer, whereby the adhesivesecures the layers together, sandwiching granules from the top of thebase layer therebetween. Examples of laminated shingles include thosedisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,181,361 and 5,287,669, for example.

One prior art process for producing a laminated shingle is disclosed inFIG. 1 hereof, which will hereinafter be discussed in greater detail.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed toward providing a multi-layerlaminated shingle in which the base layer is inverted relative to thesecondary layer. This allows for the butt zone of the base layer to bevisible through slots or other voids between adjacent tabs of the top,or secondary layer. The layers of shingle are preferably complementallycut from a single sheet of material. The base layer thereby has tab andbutt portions which traverse butt and tab portions of the secondaryshingle layer, respectively. Improved nailing or other fastener heightis provided. The invention lends itself toward savings in shinglematerial, improved stacking for packaging purposes and easierinstallation onto a roof upon being removed from the packaging.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is a primary object of this invention to provide a novelmethod of making a multi-layer laminated shingle.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a method of making alaminated shingle having a base layer and a secondary layer, wherein thebase layer is of "full height"; namely, transcending the full height ofthe secondary layer.

It is an object of this invention to accomplish the above objects,wherein the shingles are made to facilitate material utilizationefficiency.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a novel method ofmanufacturing shingles.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readilyapparent upon the reading of the following brief descriptions of thedrawing figures, detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiments andthe appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF DRAWING FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a schematic top plan view of an assembly line for themanufacture of shingles in accordance with the prior art.

FIG. 2 is an end elevation of a pair of shingles, taken generally alongthe line II--II of FIG. 1, and wherein there is shown in phantom, themanner in which shingles are stacked for packaging.

FIG. 3 is a view somewhat similar to that of FIG. 1, but whereinshingles of the present invention are made in accordance with theprocess of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view somewhat similar to that of FIG. 2, but taken generallyalong the line IV--IV of FIG. 3, wherein shingles of the presentinvention may be stacked, and packaged, as shown in phantom in FIG. 4.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of a shingle in accordance with the presentinvention, whereby a secondary layer is disposed on top of a base layer,forming a laminated shingle.

FIG. 6 is a view similar to that of FIG. 5, but wherein the base layeris offset slightly downwardly, and to the right, relative to thesecondary layer disposed thereon.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Referring now to the drawings in detail, reference is first made to FIG.1, wherein a substantially continuous sheet of web 10 is provided,travelling generally in the path indicated for the arrow 11, from leftto right, with the web then passing through a coating zone 12, wherebypairs of rollers or other applicators, dip tanks or the like, apply abituminous coating to the sheet of web 10. The bituminous coated web 13may pass over suitable backcoating roller 14, as desired. The coated web13 then passes beneath a granule applicator 15, which may be of thehopper type, containing granules for distribution along the web 13 viaslots or the like (not shown) at the bottom of the hopper 15. The hopper15 has a section 15a for distributing lighter granules, if desired, andoptionally sections 15b and 15c for distributing darker granules, ifdesired.

The web 13 then passes between a pair of opposed rollers 16, 17, carriedon appropriate respective shafts 18, 20.

The roller 17 has cutting blades 21, 24 on its surface, to cut the sheet13 into two side-by-side, complementally configured sub-sheets 22, 23and two edge strips 34, 35 of shingle material outside sub-sheets 22,23. The sub-sheets 22, 23 and edge strips 34, 35 then pass over suitableadhesive applicators 36, 36a for applying a bitumin or other adhesive toa lower surface thereof by means of an applicator roll 36, 36a or thelike (shown in FIG. 1 between fragmentally illustrated ends ofsub-sheets 22, 23 and shingle strips 28, 29). The edge strips 34, 35 aregenerally of a height "h", half the height H for the sub-sheets 22, 23.These strips 34, 35 are then passed beneath applicators 36, 36a ofadhesive. The sub-sheets (or layers) 22, 23, with the adhesive on lowersurfaces thereof, are brought together to overlie edge strips 34, 35, asshown by arrows 37, 38, after shingle layers 26, 27 are delivered intoposition, to form continuous laminated shingle strips 28, 29, which thenpass beneath suitable knife blades 25, 25a or the like, which cut thelaminated shingle strips 28, 29 into discrete shingles 42, 43, generallyof a length L and height H from an original sheet width W.

In the embodiment shown for FIG. 1, the shingle layers 26, 27 have voids30 spacing tabs 31 from each other.

It will then be seen that the secondary shingle layers 26, 27, whencombined with the shingle layers 34a, 35a, have portions of the shinglelayers 34a, 35a, visible through the voids 30 between tabs 31, as shownat the right end of FIG. 1. Where, for example, it is desired thatportions of surfaces of layers 34a, 35a are visible through voids 30,for the shingles 42, 43, such visible surfaces may be surfaces that havedarker colored granules relative to perhaps lighter granules applied tothe upper surfaces of the sheet 13 by granule applicator sections 15band 15c, resulting in darker appearing shingle surfaces between visibletabs of shingles 42, 43 with lighter granules on the visible tabsurfaces.

In making shingles in accordance with FIG. 1, for example, with respectto shingles having a length L of 36 inches and a height H of 12 inchesfor shingles having a tab size T of 5 inches and a butt height B of 7inches, the base layer 34a or 35a will normally be of a height "h" of 6inches, or half the shingle height H. Therefore, when lower edges of theshingle, for example shingle 43, at the right end of FIG. 1 are formedsuch that layers 35a and 27 are aligned, the nailing zone "n" is of aheight of 1 inch, forming a nailing zone 1 inch high completely acrossthe 36 inch length L of finished shingle 43. The same applies forshingle 42.

With reference now to FIG. 2, it will be seen that in stacking shinglesinto a package, a shingle 43 will first be flipped over as shown inphantom in FIG. 2, so that the half-size base layers 34a, 35a may bestacked as shown in FIG. 2. While this provides a convenience from thepoint of view of stacking height, it requires a re-orienting both asshown by the arrow of FIG. 2 and also end-over-end, for the shingle 43as indicated, followed by an opposite re-orienting of the shingle 43 asthe same is removed from the stack for installation on a roof, by aroofer.

It will further be understood that shingles of different heights H maybe constructed in accordance with the process of FIG. 1, and that thewidth of the sheet W will vary accordingly.

It will also be understood that shingles in accordance with FIG. 1 maybe made from sheets having multiples of the width W.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments

With reference now to FIGS. 3-6, preferred embodiments in accordancewith the present invention are illustrated.

In FIG. 3, a generally continuous web 110 of preferably fiberglass matis provided, although the same can be wholly or partly of organic fiber,if desired. The web 110 travels from left to right in the direction ofthe arrow 111, under an applicator 112, where a bitumin coating isapplied. The applicator 112 can be a pair of opposed rollers applyingthe coating, a bitumin bath, or the like, as desired.

The bitumin coated web 113 may then be passed over a suitablebackcoating roller conveyor 114 or the like, as desired, and the coatedweb 113 is delivered to a granule application zone 115. In zone 115, ahopper or the like delivers granules which may, if desired, compriselighter granules 115a and darker granules 115b from suitable sections ofthe granule applicator 115, whereby the granules are dispersed on theupper surface of the sheet, as shown, adhering to the bitumin coating onthe mat as the sheet is delivered from left-to-right.

The sheet then passes between a pair of rollers 116, 117, respectivelyshaft-mounted at 118, 120. The upper roller 117 has a plurality ofsevering or cutting blades 121 on its peripheral surface such that, asthe cylindrical member 117 rotates, it severs the sheet 113 into a pairof parallel sub-sheets 122, 123 with a cut line 124 between them thatdefines complemental tabs in sub-sheets.

The shingle layers thus made; namely layers 126, 127 are separated asshown by arrows 128, 129 and comprise the secondary and base layers ofshingle in accordance with the present invention, and are eachpreferably of a height H', each of which is comprised of a tab zone T'and a butt zone B'. Voids 130 cut into the tab zones T' of the shinglelayers 126, 127 by means of the cutting mechanism 117, createsspaced-apart tabs 131 in the shingle layers 126, 127. An adhesiveapplicator 136 of the roller or other suitable type is provided forapplying adhesive to the underneath of layer 126 before the layers 126,127 are brought together via arrows 128, 129 (shown between fragmentallyillustrated layers 126, 127 in FIG. 3).

As the shingle layers 126 and 127 are brought together with adhesivetherebetween, there is thus provided a laminated shingle of two layers.In this regard, it will be noted that, as laminated together, the buttzone B' of the base layer 127 is disposed against the bottom surface ofthe tab zone T' of the secondary layer 126, and the tab zone T' of thebase layer 127 is disposed against the bottom surface of the butt zoneB' of the secondary layer 126.

The laminated-together shingle layers 126, 127 then pass beneath asuitable cutting blade 125 or the like, which severs the continuouslaminated-together double layer of shingle material into discreteshingles of predetermined length L'. As an alternative, the cuttingcould occur prior to the laminating step via cutting blade 125a, shownin phantom in FIG. 3.

It will be noted, as aforesaid, that the granule-depositing hopper 115may be provided with a section having lighter granules 115a, and asection having darker granules 115b, for creating a zone of darkergranules in the butt zone B' of one of the sub-sheets of shinglematerial. This is to provide the facility for providing different visualeffects, whereby, after the shingles are laminated together, portions ofthe butt zone B' of shingle layer 127 that are visible through the voids130 of shingle layer 126 may provide a contrast of darker and lightergranules, with the darker granule surface being broken up by tabs 131 ofshingle layer 126, as shown at the right of FIG. 3, if desired. It willbe apparent that many other variations can be achieved with applicationof granules of different shading, different colors, etc., as may bedesired.

With particular reference to FIG. 4, it will be seen that a plurality ofmulti-layer shingles 143 may be packaged together, all similarlyoriented, without requiring a re-orienting step of the prior art typediscussed above with reference to FIG. 2. In this regard, a package mayreadily be formed by placing a wrapping material 144 to receive aplurality of similarly oriented shingles 143 therein, stacked as shownin phantom at 145, with opposite edges of the wrapping 144 being foldedupward in the direction of the arrows 146, as shown in phantom at 147,to comprise a wrapped package as shown.

With reference now to FIG. 5, it will be seen that the laminated shingle143 is provided with a double-layer nailing strip 148 running from leftto right as shown in FIG. 5, of a height N. The height N is the distancemeasured between the lowermost portion 139 of a void 130 (shown inphantom) in base layer 127 and the upper edge 140 of the void 130 (shownin full lines) in FIG. 5, with the nailing strip or band 148 runningcompletely across the shingle from its left edge to right edge, also asshown in FIG. 5. Thus, a plurality of nails 150, as shown in phantom, orother suitable fasteners such as staples or the like, may be applied asthe shingle 143 is secured to a roof. This nailing band is generallyparallel to the upper and lower edges 137, 138 of the shingle layers,and between said edges 138, 139, and is continuous along the laminatedlayers until the layers are severed by tool 125, after which the nailingband is the length L'.

For a shingle that is of a height H' of 18 inches, such that its tabs T'represent cuts of 8 inches above a lower edge 151 of secondary layer126, and wherein the butt zone B' is 10 inches in height and whereineach of the voids 130 are of a height A of 8 inches, the height of thenailing strip N is 2 inches. The 2 inch nailing strip of the presentinvention is particularly desirable when the shingles 143 are beingapplied to a very steep roof, because the weight of the shingle, whenapplied to a steep roof, bears more heavily on the nails 150 than in thecase of a roof of gentler slope. In accordance with the presentinvention, the nails 150 have greater ability to engage the shingle inthe nailing zone N, if they can engage both layers of the shingle. Also,in accordance with the present invention, tab zones T' of the shingle127, as for example, can be seen in FIG. 5, provides shingle materialwell above nails located therebeneath.

It will thus be seen that, particularly for double layer shingles,wherein each of the base and secondary layers of the shingle have voidsmeasured inwardly a distance "A", from the adjacent edge (the upper edgeof the base layer and the lower edge of the secondary layer), where theupper and lower edges of the layers of shingles are superimposed asshown in FIG. 5, the shingle height H' will equal 2 A+N.

Thus, for a shingle height H' of 18 inches and where the height of thevoid A for each of the shingle layers is 8 inches, the nailing strip Nwill be 2 inches high. Also, for a shingle wherein the height H' is 12inches, and wherein the void is cut into a shingle layer to a heightfrom the edge 151 or 152, an amount A of 5 inches each, the height ofthe nailing strip N will also be 2 inches. In both cases, such shinglesare of a length L' of 36 inches, although variations in length maylikewise be provided.

It will also be understood that, within the broadest aspects of thisinvention, there could be some variation in the height A of the voids,between base and secondary layers of the shingle, as may be desired, andin such cases, for a shingle of a given height H', such may vary theheight N of the double layer nailing strip. However, it will generallybe desirable that the double layer nailing strip be of a height N thatis greater than 1 inch, for facilitating a desirable nailing height.

With reference to FIG. 6, it is seen that there is a lateral offsetbetween edges of voids that define the tab junctures between edges 160,161, whereby the complemental cuts 124, whereby tabs and voids, havingbeen cut from the same sheet, need not be aligned from base layer tosecondary layer. Thus, the offset "O" shown in FIG. 6 represents adegree of misalignment between the base and secondary layers. Also, itwill be noted that the base layer is vertically offset relative to thesecondary layer 127, by a vertical amount S, with the base layerprotruding below lower edges of tabs 131 an amount that provides agenerally horizontal shadow effect, which provides a simulated greaterthickness for the shingle, when a plurality of shingles are laid-up on aroof. Where there is such an offset S at the lower edge of the shingleas shown in FIG. 6, the upwardly extending tabs 131 of base shinglelayer 127 also stop short of the upper edge of secondary shingle layer126, by an amount S, as shown. Such a vertical offset will therebyreduce the height of the nailing zone from that N to an amount N', asshown in FIG. 6.

It will thus be apparent that the invention allows for a reduction inthe amount of material that is necessary to make a shingle having two"full height" layers, even though voids comprise some of the portions ofthe shingle of each layer. In this regard, it will be seen that a sheet113 of bituminous coated web can be of a width W' of 28 inches, in orderto produce shingles having heights H' of 18 inches, and that sheetshaving a width W' of 19 inches can produce shingles having an overallheight H' as shown in FIG. 5 of 12 inches.

Furthermore, the present invention facilitates stacking of the shinglesas described with reference to FIG. 4, without requiring aflipping-over, re-orientation of shingles as in the prior artillustration of FIG. 2, and without requiring an opposite re-orientationby the roofing contractor upon applying the shingles to a roof. Rather,the shingles, upon being removed from their wrapper 144 for use inapplying to a roof, are all oriented in the same way; i.e., allpreferably facing upwardly.

The present invention also efficiently uses shingle material by using ashingle base layer that essentially transcends from the lower edge ofthe shingle to the upper edge, but because of voids in the base layerthat are covered by the secondary layer, omits use of some of the weightof shingle material, and thereby reduces to some extent, the weight ofthe finished shingle where such material is not needed; namely in someportions of the butt zone of the base shingle layer, yet allowingefficient stacking of shingles one upon the other to result in a flatbundle.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that various modifications may bemade in the details of construction, the method of making and usingshingles, and the method of packaging shingles, all within the spiritand scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:
 1. A method of making a multi-layer laminated shinglecomprising the steps of:(a) providing a base layer of shingle having abutt zone and a tab zone, upper and lower edges and top and bottomsurfaces, with bituminous coated web between the surfaces and withgranules applied to the top surface thereof; (b) providing a secondarylayer of shingle having a butt zone and a tab zone, upper and loweredges and top and bottom surfaces, with bituminous coated web betweenthe surfaces and with granules applied to the top surface thereof; and(c) laminating said layers together, with granules of the base layersandwiched between laminated layers, with the butt zone of the baselayer disposed against the bottom surface of the tab zone of thesecondary layer and with the tab zone of the base layer disposed againstthe bottom surface of the butt zone of the secondary layer; and (d)cutting the shingle layers to predetermined length.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, including the steps of cutting the shingle layers to havespaced apart tabs in their tab zones, separated by at least one void ineach layer between tabs of that layer, with the tabs of the base layerbeing cut inwardly from an upper edge of the base layer, and with thetabs of the secondary layer being cut inwardly from a lower edge of thesecondary layer.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the laminating stepincludes placing the layers together to have a substantially completedouble layer overlap along a line generally parallel to said upper andlower edges and between said upper and lower edges of the layers, ofgreater height than 1 inch, substantially completely along theoverlapped layers of shingle.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein thecutting step includes:(a) cutting the base layer so that the at leastone void of the base layer is of a height substantially "A" measuredinwardly from an upper edge of the base layer; (b) cutting the secondarylayer so that the at least one void of the secondary layer is of aheight substantially "A" measured inwardly from a lower edge of thesecondary layer; and (c) wherein the laminating step includes placingthe layers together so that the shingle has a height of substantially atleast 2 A plus N, where N is the height, greater than 1 inch, ofsubstantially complete double layer overlap, inward of upper and lowerlayer edges, whereby a double layer nailing strip of greater height than1 inch is provided substantially completely across the overlapped layersof the shingle.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the laminating stepincludes placing the layers together so that N equals approximately 2inches, whereby the nailing strip is approximately 2 inches in height.6. The method of any one of claims 4 or 5, wherein A is approximately 8inches.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the cutting step includescutting the shingle layers to each have a height of approximately 18inches.
 8. The method of any one of claims 4 or 5, wherein A isapproximately 5 inches.
 9. The method of claim 6, wherein the cuttingstep includes cutting the shingle layers to each have a height ofapproximately 12 inches.
 10. The method of any one of claims 2-4,wherein the cutting step includes cutting at least one tab and at leastone void of said secondary layer to be of complemental configuration tosaid at least one void and said at least one tab, respectively, of saidbase layer.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the laminating stepincludes placing said at least one tab of said base layer to besubstantially aligned with said complementally configured at least onevoid of said secondary layer, between top and bottom edges of saidshingle layers.
 12. The method of any one of claims 2-4, wherein thecutting step includes cutting a plurality of said tabs and voids in eachsaid base and secondary layers, with the tabs and voids of saidsecondary layer being cut to be of complemental configuration to saidvoids and tabs, respectively, of said base layer, and wherein thelaminating step includes placing the tabs of said base layer to besubstantially aligned with said complementally configured voids of saidsecondary layer between top and bottom edges of said shingle layers. 13.The method of any one of claims 2-4, wherein the laminating stepincludes placing the layers together so that at least one portion of theupper surface of the base layer is visible through said at least onevoid of said secondary layer, and wherein the application of granulesincludes applying darker granules on said one portion of said uppersurface of the base layer, in contrast to lighter granules applied onthe upper surface of the tab zone of said secondary layer.
 14. Themethod of claim 13, wherein the step of placing the layers togetherincludes arranging the layers so that a darker granule portion of theupper surface of said butt zone of said base layer is visible beneaththe lower edge of at least one tab in said tab zone of said secondarylayer.
 15. A method of making a multi-layer laminated shingle of atleast two layers of shingle material, with enhanced fastening area,comprising the steps of:(a) producing a substantially continuousbituminous coated web between opposite web longitudinal edges anddelivering the same longitudinally, along a path of travel; (b) applyinggranules to the coated web, to adhere thereto and thereby produce asheet of complete shingle material with granules on a top surfacethereof between sheet longitudinal edges; (c) severing the sheetlongitudinally into two generally parallel layers while cutting thesheet along a line of severance to define a tab zone for each layer, oftabs spaced apart by voids, with tabs and voids in each layer beingcomplementally configured relative to voids and tabs, respectively inthe other layer, across the line of severance, and with butt zones inthe parallel layers being between the tab zones and the sheetlongitudinal edges; (d) laminating said layers together, with granulesof the base layer sandwiched between laminated layers, with the buttzone of the base layer disposed against the bottom surface of the tabzone of the secondary layer and with the tab zone of the base layerdisposed against the bottom surface of the butt zone of the secondarylayer; and (e) cutting transversely to produce base and secondaryshingle layers of predetermined longitudinal length, each having top andbottom surfaces.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the producing stepcomprises producing a continuous sheet of approximately 28 inches intransverse width, between longitudinal sheet edges, and wherein thesevering step includes severing the sheet into two parallel layers, eachapproximately 18 inches in transverse width across the tab zone and buttzone of each parallel layer, between the line of severance and a sheetlongitudinal edge.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein the producingstep comprises producing a continuous sheet of approximately 19 inchestransverse width, between longitudinal sheet edges, and wherein thesevering step includes severing the sheet into two parallel layers, eachapproximately 12 inches in transverse width across the tab zone and buttzone of each parallel layer, between the line of severance and a sheetlongitudinal edge.
 18. The method of any one of claims 16 or 17, whereinthe laminating step includes placing the layers together to comprisesubstantially complete double layers overlapped longitudinally of thelayers and of a transverse width of double layer overlap of at least oneinch.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein the laminating step includesplacing the layers together to have substantially two inches of doublelayer overlap in transverse width.
 20. The method of claim 15, whereinthe step of applying granules includes applying darker granules in thebutt zone of one of the layers and applying lighter granules in the tabzone of the other layer.
 21. The method of claim 20, wherein thelaminating step includes placing the layers together so that at leastone portion of the upper surface of the butt zone of the base layer,with darker granules thereon, is visible through at least one voidbetween tabs with lighter granules of the secondary layer.
 22. Themethod of any one of claims 1 and 15, wherein the cutting step occursfollowing the laminating step.
 23. The method of any one of claims 1 and15, wherein the cutting step occurs prior to the laminating step.